12 Best Movies That Soccer Fans Need To See

Whether you're a sports fan or not, it's hard to deny the sentimental appeal of a gripping sports movie. There's nothing quite like witnessing people striving to achieve their dreams, and watching interpersonal or even political dramas play out on the field. But while there are plenty of famous baseball, basketball, and football movies out there, there seems to be one sport that often gets left out of the conversation: soccer. Much of this is probably due to the fact that soccer has only started to grow in popularity in America over the last couple of decades (via World Soccer Talk), which means it hasn't had time to sink into our national imagination the way these other sports have.

Of course, America is not actually the center of the world, and plenty of other countries have been deeply invested in soccer for much longer than we have. You only have to hop across the pond to find a hefty supply of soccer — or as the rest of the world calls it, football – movies, which is great news for the avid soccer fans among us. As with all sports movies, the genre these films fall under runs the gamut. There's straightforward dramas, historical epics, documentaries, and even romantic comedies. Suffice it to say, there's something for everyone.

If you're a soccer fan yourself — or you're just really into "Ted Lasso" – then you've come to the right place. Keep reading to discover all the best movies you need to add to the list and satiate your sporty appetite.

Before you get confused, no, we are not recommending you watch the 2005 movie "Fever Pitch" starring Jimmy Fallon and Drew Barrymore, as that film is in fact about baseball, not soccer. What we are suggesting is that you watch the 1997 film "Fever Pitch," the movie on which the 2005 film is based. (In actuality, both films are based on the book "Fever Pitch: A Fan's Life" by British author Nick Hornsby.)

The film follows a man named Paul (Colin Firth), a teacher who is obsessed with Arsenal, a team that hasn't had a winning season in 18 years. Paul becomes involved with a new teacher at his school, Sarah (Ruth Gemmell), but things become difficult when he tries to balance his love for Arsenal with his feelings for Sarah. As it says in the film's trailer, "Things get complicated when you love one woman and worship 11 men."

Sarah, of course, doesn't understand football and thinks it's silly to spend all your time thinking about a game. Meanwhile, Paul tries to explain to her that he's loved Arsenal for 20 years now and he won't give up on his dream of them finally winning a league cup. A classic '90s romantic comedy with soccer as the central theme and central conflict, this one might be up your alley if you can relate to the obsessive experience of being a soccer fan.

The 2010 film "Looking For Eric" has a fantastical premise that works due to the charm of its lead actors. The film follows Eric Bishop (Steve Evets), a man whose life isn't going so well. He's separated from his wife (Stephanie Bishop) and neither of his sons (Gerard Kearns, Stefan Gumbs) seem to respect him all that much. His job at the post office isn't getting any more exciting and, to top it all off, he gets in a car accident and winds up in the hospital. After smoking weed one night, he hallucinates his hero: Manchester United player Eric Cantona. Eric's life sees a remarkable improvement with the help of the famed footballer, who is played by Cantona himself.

Though it may seem rather fanciful on paper, "Looking For Eric" sees its characters facing the harsh problems of the world with realistic grit and occasional despair. But, despite the depressed state of Eric's life, it's also a heartwarming comedy filled with good-hearted laughs. Eric Cantona is surprisingly great in the film, and he has winning chemistry with Steve Evets. It may not be precisely about the sport of soccer, per se, but it is about how our heroes can come through for us in unexpected ways.

"The Damned United" is a soccer movie that focuses on neither the players nor the fans. Instead, it focuses on an equally celebrated and maligned figure in sports: the manager. Michael Sheen plays Brian Clough, who was the manager of Leeds United Football Club for a whopping 44 days in 1974. When Leeds manager Don Revie (Colm Meaney) becomes the manager of England's national team, he is replaced by Clough, the former manager of Derby County, Leeds' biggest rival. Clough despises Leeds' rough playing style — and many of the players themselves — and tries (unsuccessfully) to bend the team to his will.

The movie is based on David Pierce's book of the same name, which is a largely fictionalized account of Clough's tenure at Leeds United. No one really knows what precisely went wrong during those fateful days, and the film doesn't exactly make it any clearer. Did the players actually lose games to sabotage Clough, as some rumors have suggested? The film doesn't answer these questions, but it does offer the compelling tale of an underdog's journey where the hero doesn't actually come out on top. Michael Sheen's performance is riveting and he all but disappears in the role, giving even non-soccer fans something to chew on. American audiences might not understand the intricacies of British football — or the accents — but it's entertaining enough to overcome any mild confusion we might have.

The 2006 film "Offside" was directed by legendary Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi, a director who has been arrested and imprisoned several times (via the New York Times) for his influential and often incisive work. The film follows several Iranian women who attempt to attend a World Cup qualifying match in disguise, but are arrested and imprisoned before they can enter the stadium. They spend the entirety of the match in a holding cell, while one sympathetic soldier relays the events of the game to them.

The film was inspired by Panahi's own daughter, who decided to sneak into a game despite the fact that women are not allowed inside soccer stadiums in Iran. The film was partially shot at an actual World Cup qualifying match, which gives it a very documentary-like feel. The topic at hand was so controversial that Panahi gave the Ministry of Guidance a fake script in order to get a license for the film — which they withheld until he edited his previous films, which he refused to do. It was then banned in Iran, as was the case with his earlier work.

"Offside" is clearly a socially and politically important film, but it's also an artistically interesting one. Panahi hired non-actors to be in the film, and because parts of it had to be improvised due to the guerilla-style nature of filming, it has a very naturalistic feel to it. For those interested in the larger social problems connected to sports, "Offside" is a must-see.

There are plenty of interesting sports documentaries out there, but few are quite like "Zidane: A 21st Century Portrait." The 2006 documentary focuses entirely on French player Zidane Zidane over the course of a match between Real Madrid and Villareal in 2005. The documentary was filmed in real-time at a stadium in Madrid, using 17 different cameras to capture Zidane's movements throughout the game. Zidane was actually booted from the field after getting into a fight during the dramatic match's last few minutes.

The film is similar to the 1970 documentary "Football As Never Before," which follows Manchester United player George Best. "Zidane: A 21st Century Portrait" was also cited as an inspiration for Spike Lee's film "Kobe Doin' Work." Unless you've seen these other two films, you've probably never seen anything like "Zidane" before. It may not be the best film for those who have no interest in the specifics of the sport itself, but for soccer fanatics, it's a fascinating portrait of a seemingly polarizing player. The soundtrack by Scottish experimental band Mogwai adds another layer of dark intrigue to the portrait. 

You've certainly never watched a soccer game like this, and it might even get you to think about the sport differently. Watching Zidane's intense concentration is impressive, as is the skill with which the camera operators have captured his agile movements. It's somewhat avant-garde, sure, but it might just be able to capture your attention in a new way.

It can be hard to distill what makes a legend so memorable, but the 2019 documentary "Diego Maradona" attempts to do just that. Directed by British filmmaker Asif Kapadia, who also directed the 2015 film "Amy," the film uses never-before-seen archival footage to showcase Maradona's life and career following his transfer to S.S.C. Napoli in 1984. Maradona was one of the most beloved but also one of the most controversial players ever, and the film uses footage from the height of his fame to illustrate what the world around him was like at the time.

What's unique about "Diego Maradona" is that unlike other documentaries of this kind, it doesn't cut to talking heads in order to explain the events that transpire. Instead, it lets the footage speak for itself, letting the viewer consider for themselves whether Maradona's treatment by the soccer world was just or not. While it may tell a story that feels familiar to sports documentary fans, it does so with considerable energy and intrigue. As John Doyle wrote in The Globe and Mail, "It teems with life and is unlike most biopics about a sports legend. That is, it actually delivers a pungent sense of the atmosphere surrounding him."

You might already know the story — and if you don't you're in for even more of a thrill — but "Diego Maradona" will give you a new perspective on the events that rocked the sports world. It would be a shame if a film about Maradona was not as interesting and complicated as the man himself, but, luckily, that's not the case.